OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

San Diego City Council Meeting: Budget, Fees, and CIP Actions, March 3, 2025

City Council — Monday, March 3, 2025
BodySan Diego, California
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, March 3, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
Meeting Thumbnail
⇩ GET FROM SOURCE

STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Home wage program web page.

0:09

I gotta use my hands to build things, be outside a lot, listen to music, use my brain, try to figure out a way to fix broken things.

0:17

It's a little bit of work, it's a little task.

0:20

If you don't know what you're doing, you can make a mess out of it.

0:26

Oh, countertops were pretty beat up.

0:28

So we're just resurfacing them.

0:30

Make them look a little prettier.

0:32

If we can't remove the old one, we just rough it up and reskin over the top and a couple little things to make sure everything works out right in the end and it has longevity and lasts for as long as we can make it last.

0:44

Hopefully it serves not only kids but anybody who wants to use the library.

0:49

When they sit down, they think, hey, this is a nice place to sit down and do what I gotta do.

0:53

We always think about the impact on the city.

0:55

We do whatever we have to do to make sure the public can use one of the city facilities.

1:01

We want it to look good.

1:02

We have a little pride in our work.

1:03

We want them to be able to walk in and say this is a nice place to be.

1:06

We do everything from roofs to floors, walls, ceilings, anything that has to do with basic carpentry, sometimes not basic carpentry.

1:14

We build new, we fix, we repair.

1:16

For the most part, we're all here working together just to try to make things easier and better for the city.

1:22

It is nice to be able to make something a little nicer for the people in the community who need to use things and appreciate what can start.

1:47

Sorry, find this a beautiful view for the ocean.

1:53

Rain or shine.

1:55

I'm here.

1:56

That was right here in the front.

1:57

I walk the course every day.

2:00

18 holes.

2:03

Every morning I change the holes.

2:06

Move the two markers, took the David.

2:13

In 2003, I come here in Tory and I stay here.

2:17

I love my job.

2:19

The people tell me, oh thank you, the course looks beautiful.

2:23

Thank you for the good job.

2:25

This is my last farmers.

2:27

The insurance open is closed now.

2:32

But for the city is uh February 2nd.

2:36

Well, I said nervous uh include everything.

2:40

The 20 years we have here is I I do the same thing.

2:44

I never changed.

2:59

This unit started three decades ago with a pair of binoculars and a paper map book, which some people don't even know what that looks like.

3:09

So I've been a San Diego police officer for over 22 years.

3:13

I think it sounded really exciting to be able to do patrol work but from the air.

3:21

I assumed that everybody here had a long history of aviation experience and I did not.

3:26

I had zero aviation experience.

3:28

It actually took me bumping into one of the pilots that worked here and telling them I'd love to go to that unit, but I'm not a pilot.

3:36

He's the one who told me you don't have to be.

3:37

There's a lot of training that goes into getting to this unit and to succeeding in this unit.

3:42

So the difficulty is high.

3:44

This is a very small unit.

3:46

It feels like a family to me.

3:48

We've all worked incredibly hard to get here.

3:50

The cockpit is a very small place, so we have to get along with each other, but the fact of the matter is that we do.

3:56

This job is so dynamic.

3:58

It goes from zero to 60 so fast that uh you have to be ready for it.

4:03

We have four helicopters, but the one behind me is our newest helicopter.

4:07

It has a lot of safety features that make it safer to fly.

4:10

And since it's newer, we were able to upgrade a lot of the tactical flight officers' equipment, the screens inside there.

4:17

It has a lot of cool features that are helping us do our job better and safer.

4:20

We offer a perspective that no one else on the ground has, and I think we have a tremendous ability because of that to de-escalate situations and help them be resolved in ways that might not have gone that way if we weren't there.

4:35

Technology is paramount in why we're so good at what we do, why we find people that would not be found.

4:41

We can find people that are hiding in people's backyards and canyon areas, even under cars sometimes that may not be found if it wasn't for us looking around.

4:51

There are calls where I know in my heart that because I was there, an officer was safer, or a suspect went to jail that wouldn't, or a citizen was safer because we were there.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Comment██████████████████18%
Budget Equity Analysis█████████████████17%
Capital Improvement Planning████████8%
Public Safety███████7%
Procedural███████7%
Cannabis Regulation██████6%
Parks and Recreation█████5%
Public Health████4%
Public Engagement████4%
Summary of Proceedings

San Diego City Council Meeting Summary: March 3, 2025

The San Diego City Council met on Monday, March 3, 2025. The morning session included an invocation, land acknowledgement, and closed session items. The council recessed into closed session and reconvened at 2 PM for the regular agenda. The council addressed the FY 2025 mid-year budget monitoring report, comprehensive user fee updates, parks and recreation fees, and capital improvement program adjustments, taking public testimony and voting on each item.

Closed Session

  • The council recessed into closed session for four items: existing litigation (CS1 – Noe Cordero et al. v. City of San Diego; CS4 – Save Our Access v. City of San Diego), labor negotiations (CS2 – San Diego Police Officers Association), and real property negotiations (CS3 – Sports Arena Boulevard properties). No reportable actions were announced.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Closed session items: Speakers expressed varied positions, including support for police, concerns about Midway Rising lease negotiations, and caution regarding Save Our Access litigation.
  • Item 200 (Budget): Multiple speakers opposed a potential cannabis business tax increase, citing the burden on patients and small businesses, and the risk of driving consumers to the illegal market. Others supported increasing cannabis taxes to address public health costs. A speaker from the Municipal Employees Association praised initial cost-saving actions but urged more work.
  • Item 202 (User Fees): Speakers raised concerns about significant fee increases for nonprofit special events, including ArtWalk San Diego and Padres representatives. The Teamsters Local 911 expressed support for user fees to fund lifeguard services. Others questioned the general plan maintenance fee subsidy.
  • Item 201 (Parks Fees): Public comment addressed the impact of fee increases on youth sports and the need for equitable fee structures. The Municipal Employees Association noted they were not consulted on non-resident fee feasibility despite a committee request.
  • S400 (CIP Outlook): A speaker suggested a physical tour of infrastructure to understand the gap. Another speaker hoped for future revenue measure options.
  • S401 (CIP Adjustments): Councilmember Moreno voiced strong concerns about funding diversions affecting District 8 projects, including La Media Road and street paving.
  • Non-Agenda Public Comment: Speakers discussed street safety improvements, air quality concerns, cannabis and tobacco regulations, and a request for smoke-free multi-unit housing.

Discussion Items

  • FY 2025 Mid-Year Budget Monitoring Report (Item 200): Mayor Todd Gloria and Department of Finance staff presented the report. The general fund is projected to see revenues $19.6 million (0.9%) under budget and expenditures $4.9 million (0.2%) over budget, resulting in a $24.4 million budgetary deficit. Major drivers: sales tax revenue projected $29.4 million below budget, and SDG&E franchise fees $33.2 million below forecast. The projected ending fund balance is negative $3.9 million, requiring a draw from reserves. Police Chief presented overtime overages of $9.8 million due to staffing shortages. Mitigation actions already taken include increased parking meter rates; potential actions include parking citation increases, user fee increases, and a cannabis business tax increase.
  • FY 2026 Comprehensive User Fee Analysis (Item 202): The Department of Finance proposed updating 681 fees, with 295 increases, 229 new fees, 71 eliminations, and 61 unchanged. The package was projected to generate $21.2 million in additional revenue citywide and achieve 95% cost recovery. Council amendments: set police and fire rescue special event fees for nonprofits at 50% cost recovery (for county of San Diego based nonprofits); remove community room rental fees for nonprofits at branch libraries; and exclude the parking expired meter fine increase.
  • Parks and Recreation FY 2026 User Fees (Item 201): Parks and Recreation proposed a 19.5% CPI-based increase on most fees, projecting $977,000 in additional general fund revenue. Amendments: bring beach bars, boat mooring, and relocation fees to 100% cost recovery; set adult sports league fees at 90% cost recovery; and remove youth sports league fee increases (an amendment to keep youth fees unchanged passed 7-2).
  • Five-Year Capital Infrastructure Planning Outlook (S400): The city engineer presented the FY 2026–2030 CIP outlook, identifying $11.9 billion in needs over five years, with $5.4 billion in available funding, leaving a $6.5 billion gap. The IBA recommended exploring new revenue sources such as a sales tax measure, general obligation bonds, or a stormwater fee. This was an informational item.
  • CIP Mid-Year Appropriation Adjustments (S401): The Department of Finance requested $71.3 million in appropriations, de-appropriations, and reallocations for general fund asset types, prioritizing emergency stormwater projects and projects already in construction. Council amendments kept two projects open: Spindrift Drive beach access walkway and Via del Valle improvements.

Key Outcomes

  • Item 200: Approved 8-1 (Councilmember Foster dissenting).
  • Item 202: Approved 8-1 (Councilmember Moreno dissenting) with amendments.
  • Item 201: Approved 8-1 (Councilmember Moreno dissenting) with amendments; the amendment to remove youth sports league fee increases passed 7-2 (Councilmembers Campbell and Von Wilpert dissenting).
  • S400: Informational item; no vote.
  • S401: Approved 8-1 (Councilmember Moreno dissenting) with amendments.

The council adjourned to the regular meeting scheduled for March 4, 2025, at 10 AM.

Meeting Transcript

Home wage program web page. I gotta use my hands to build things, be outside a lot, listen to music, use my brain, try to figure out a way to fix broken things. It's a little bit of work, it's a little task. If you don't know what you're doing, you can make a mess out of it. Oh, countertops were pretty beat up. So we're just resurfacing them. Make them look a little prettier. If we can't remove the old one, we just rough it up and reskin over the top and a couple little things to make sure everything works out right in the end and it has longevity and lasts for as long as we can make it last. Hopefully it serves not only kids but anybody who wants to use the library. When they sit down, they think, hey, this is a nice place to sit down and do what I gotta do. We always think about the impact on the city. We do whatever we have to do to make sure the public can use one of the city facilities. We want it to look good. We have a little pride in our work. We want them to be able to walk in and say this is a nice place to be. We do everything from roofs to floors, walls, ceilings, anything that has to do with basic carpentry, sometimes not basic carpentry. We build new, we fix, we repair. For the most part, we're all here working together just to try to make things easier and better for the city. It is nice to be able to make something a little nicer for the people in the community who need to use things and appreciate what can start. Sorry, find this a beautiful view for the ocean. Rain or shine. I'm here. That was right here in the front. I walk the course every day. 18 holes. Every morning I change the holes. Move the two markers, took the David. In 2003, I come here in Tory and I stay here. I love my job. The people tell me, oh thank you, the course looks beautiful. Thank you for the good job. This is my last farmers. The insurance open is closed now. But for the city is uh February 2nd. Well, I said nervous uh include everything. The 20 years we have here is I I do the same thing. I never changed. This unit started three decades ago with a pair of binoculars and a paper map book, which some people don't even know what that looks like. So I've been a San Diego police officer for over 22 years. I think it sounded really exciting to be able to do patrol work but from the air. I assumed that everybody here had a long history of aviation experience and I did not. I had zero aviation experience. It actually took me bumping into one of the pilots that worked here and telling them I'd love to go to that unit, but I'm not a pilot. He's the one who told me you don't have to be. There's a lot of training that goes into getting to this unit and to succeeding in this unit. So the difficulty is high. This is a very small unit. It feels like a family to me. We've all worked incredibly hard to get here. The cockpit is a very small place, so we have to get along with each other, but the fact of the matter is that we do.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com